NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg raised the tone and warns Russia that there is no way that a nuclear war will be won should a conflict finally break out under these circumstances: “Any use of nuclear weapons will change the nature of the conflict. Russia must understand that this will never happen win nuclear war.
These statements are made amidst the uncertainty caused by the withdrawal of Russian troops whose ability to conquer territory is much lower than expected given the low capacity that Russian forces have to control certain regions that Ukrainians are retaking.
Last Tuesday, Russian government spokesman Dmitry Peskov made some alarming statements, assuring CNN in an interview that Russia would not rule out the use of nuclear weapons if it saw “an existential threat.” In particular, on whether they could use them, he said: “when there is an existential threatthen it could be.”
Fear of biological and chemical weapons
The West fears that Russia may choose to use chemical weapons in Ukraine. as he was accused at the time to do it in Syria, in complicity with the regime of Bashar alÁsad. International organizations have repeatedly tried to bring the use of these weapons before international courts, arguing that they constitute a war crime.
The other problem they see is that of biological weapons. Its possible use in the war could be viewed as bioterrorism if it were the case that Russia decided to attack with a toxin, virus or other biological derivative in order to win the war like they are trying to do now, albeit with military force.
The big news this week will be Visit of US President Joe Biden to Europe. He will meet several international leaders in Brussels for the NATO summit and next Friday will travel to the PolishUkrainian border, almost on the brink of war, to see firsthand the dramatic situation Ukrainian refugees are experiencing.